Dana Ste. Claire cautioned the near-capacity audience at Flagler Auditorium early on that there would be moments they might need to cover their ears.

That warning proved quite wise early in the show when a musket was fired several times onstage, sending up a cloud of white smoke and jarring many members of the audience.

It was all part of “To Arms! 450 Years of Military History in St. Augustine,” the fifth and final event in this year’s Discover First America! heritage series, which was sponsored by the Veterans Council of St. Johns County, among several other organizations. The series is part of the four-year St. Augustine 450th Commemoration.

Presented in theatrical form, St. Augustine’s rich military heritage was highlighted in four acts by reenactors, musicians, and current and former military personnel, much to the delight of the crowd, thanks in large part to a healthy dose of humor.

The program featured narrated short vignettes that showcased the different time periods of military history, accompanied by live music led by Tommy Bledsoe. The narrators included Brigadier Gen. Joseph Balskus, Col. Howard McGillin, Sgt. Maj. Ray Quinn and Lt. Greg Moore. Scenes included “The Men of Menendez,” “Pirates and Privateers,” “Fort Mose and Francisco Menendez,” “The British Occupation,” “The Second Spanish Period,” “The War of 1812,” “The Seminole Wars,” “The U.S. Civil War,” “The Spanish-American and World Wars” and “The Korean and Vietnam Wars.”

Opening the first act, Brigadier Gen. Dent, portrayed by Moore, told how St. Augustine has hosted military forces under a variety of flags, from the establishment of the town by Pedro Menendez all the way up to the establishment of the Florida National Guard headquarters at St. Francis Barracks in 1907.

The first scene featured Pedro Menendez, portrayed by Chad Light, who stormed out of the aisles up onstage to rally his troops to attack and rid Florida of the French Huguenots, who had set up a garrison, Fort Caroline, in what is now Jacksonville before the Spanish admiral had arrived. Light’s portrayal of Menendez is well-known by locals and, as usual, was delivered with passion. Leaving the stage, he shouted, “Viva España! Viva San Agustín!” bringing much applause.

All of the eras of St. Augustine’s history were covered before the night was over, each with its own military components.

“All through these periods, it was the military that provided the safety of the town,” Dent as Moore noted. “This has allowed St. Augustine to remain the oldest continuously occupied European settlement in North America.”

It was during the Battle of Fort Mose scene that the musket fire occurred, when actor James Bullock, as Francisco Menendez, a free black military leader serving the Spanish crown, challenged one of his musketeers to load, fire and reload his musket three times in the count of 60.

Diego the musketeer, played by John Powell, quickly and efficiently obliged, each shot preceded by the call, “Cover your ears!” Anyone not paying full attention was certainly jolted into doing so at that point.

Powell also played in the band, which provided musical interludes and a few songs throughout the event.

Some of the humor was provided by slight gaffes that were well-covered by the actors, such as when Roger Smith, portraying English governor Patrick Tonyn, tripped on his way up the stage steps and shouted angrily, “Who put that there?”

In fact, the whole scene featuring Tonyn and his beleaguered clerk, John Forbes, brilliantly played by the show’s director, Gary Bruce, was laden with much humor.

Asked to write a letter on the governor’s behalf, Forbes pulled out a large wooden fold-out box that he called a “laptop,” complete with a hand-painted apple on the cover, drawing guffaws from the audience.

Brigadier Gen. Joseph Balskus, Assistant adjutant general — air and commander of the Florida Air National Guard, concluded the presentation with a scene titled “Heritages to Horizons,” which offered an overview of the contributions being made by today’s men and women of the Florida National Guard.

The presentation was also the inaugural event on the 450th Military Commemoration Committee’s 2012 calendar. Additional events of military significance will continue through 2015 in support of its mission to educate the public about the vital role the military has played in St. Augustine’s long history. The committee is led by the Ancient City Chapter of the Military Officers Association of America and is sponsored by the St. Johns County Veterans Council.

Stephen Sanders, from Providence, R.I., is visiting family in St. Augustine. He said he read about the event in the paper and decided to attend.

“This is fantastic,” said Sanders, a U.S. Navy veteran. “My grandfather fought in World War II, and my father fought in Vietnam. I think it’s great to salute those in uniform, and it’s also a great opportunity to learn about the town’s history.”

Concluding his opening comments, Ste. Claire said he was very pleased with this year’s series.

“We can do these forever,” he said. “We never run out of ideas, and we have 450 years of history to draw from.”

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